A special note about our country list. There are somewhere between 192-196 official countries in the world, which means most other countries recognize these places as countries. This is where we started. Then there are some places that are might be countries but not everyone agrees. Then there are places that are separate enough to be countries but just aren’t technically countries because they belong to some other country. Sometimes this independence is appreciated and sometimes not. Then there groups that call many places countries and have a list as high as 325 countries and country-ish places. Confused? You should be.

We, at In The Know Traveler, recognize that these many confusions grow from politics. So, we mostly focus on “real” countries but have allowed some seemingly real, but fake, non-countries into the mix, because Greenland just isn’t Denmark — even though we love Denmark. So, we have done out best to use discretion in including some non-countries in our list. This is not a political choice, just a practical one. Hopefully, you will easily find a place to travel to with greater ease.

So, here is a list of countries, and not countries, which do not have stories on ITKT to inspire others. I know it is still confusing. However, if you have traveled to any of the following places and have a story we would like you to considering writing a story for future travelers to every country, non-country, place and destination on this big, beautiful planet.

Dangerous places
Finally, many of the countries on the following are usually not on the top of the list of places to go. Places like North Korea, Syria, Iraq and others should be avoided by most everyone right now. A number of the countries on the following list are frequently deemed dangerous by the State Department of the U.S, or have loads of poverty. Our desire to include every country is not a recommendation to visit. However, if you have been to any of these places and have a story that promotes cultural exchange then we are all ears. At the end of the day, we are all human.

Our Editor Wrote an Incredible Memoir

10,000 Miles with my Dead Father's Ashes is coming out September 18, 2018, and we are giving away travel and books for the first seven months and all book buyers get fun free gifts. Sign up here to learn more.

So, what do you do when you lose your father's ashes before the scattering? Find out here! And it is all set in Andalucia, southern Spain.